Traumatized Clementine.....

Dont you guys think Clementine is traumatized or at least kinda should be? (I dont want her to). Since day 1 she saw Lee crushingg heads, guts, and so much murder and horrible things. Well of course she is in a world filled with walkers now so what else can she see and do! I just think its so sad and is it just me or does it feel kinda weird seeing Clem talk the way she talks now (like threatened, bkackmail, etc) and how grown up she is? What do you think about old Clem? I miss her dress by the way! :P but she is rockin the new style!

forclementine

Would anyone really be surprised if she has some sort of emotional or psychological problem? They probably wouldn't be as severe if you were a good guy as Lee but she is still bound to have some problem.

All the more reason why stretching the zombie apocalypse out from a feature film into an ongoing series just isn't a good idea. Where's the entertainment value in watching people getting meaner and more miserable with every new episode?

She's probably traumatised as much as everyone in a zombie-apocalypse world. Also, she only talks manipulative/blackmailing IF you choose her to be. I did not pick any of those dialogue choices and she was still as honest and kind as she could be. But Lee's death is surely left a scar on her, you can see that if you pick the right dialogue options in her conversation with Luke at the dinner table.

This. The choices you get given are indications of the options the character is considering. For example Wyatt will always at least sound reluctant about saving the cop no matter what dialogue we chose, and will only go out there if he loses the game of chance. Wyatt also abandons the cop once Eddie drives away: Eddie stays end gets caught by Nate. This gives you a clue as to the kind of people Wyatt and Eddie are. If Eddie leaves Wyatt behind, he goes back into the fog to look for Wyatt and gets caught by Nate anyway (talking about the ending slides here).

Also, Lee usually always has a darker aggressive option, a thoughtful/kind option, and a straightforward option: these are aspects of his personality, and we merely determine which of these surface with the most dominance.

By the same token, Clementine almost always has a negative/sad/pleading/downer option, a kind/heroic option, and a pragmatic/manipulative/emotional stonewall option. Because Clementine doesn't like to manipulate people she likes, usually the pragmatic options dwindle when she is talking to someone like Christa or Omid, or later, Luke, but resurfaces later when dealing with people like Rebecca or Nick, or if she is desperate, weaker characters (psychologically) like Alvin and Sarah.

I prefer the Telltale method of storytelling where we guide a character that is developed by the story, but we aren't the character themselves, so we can't completely determine how they act or how they are changed by the world and people around them.

I think if the world suddenly got better tomorrow (in TWD), she would need some major therapy to live a stable, healthy life as an adult. But since she needs to be in a constant state of alertness, she just "doesn't have time" (to bleed!) for the worst symptoms of her trauma to manifest. But there's undoubtedly a lot of subtle signs there that she's messed up on some level. Even her survival is sort of a pyrrhic victory; she will forever be robbed of the person she would've been before TWD S1E1, and all the great potential that went with it.

im sure everyone who would survive would need a therapist if things got normal again and Clementine would definitely be a sweet little angel she was in season 1. it sucks how things have to change so quickly but i like how she can take care of herself now and i blackmail sometimes. i mean if the choices are there why not use em! i don't wanna threatened though

I think there's a difference between being traumatized and adapting to your surroundings. In my opinion, it's attitude, confidence, and self-control that make that difference.

Based on how my Clem acted in S2E1, I'd say she's not traumatized in the least. She remembers her tragedies without being owned by them, reacts to new situations in a practical way, and acknowledges how messed-up the world is without losing herself to despair. If anything, she's unrealistically tough and centered for an 11-year-old after all she's been though.

I'd say Becca from 400 Days is legitimately experiencing trauma. From the way she talks it's clear that she's lost hope and been dulled to the remaining good things TWD's world has to offer. Clem doesn't seem to dwell on the good or the bad, instead focusing on her survival - though she can still trust and cooperates with others while showing reasonable sadness over what she's lost while showing none of the hopelessness that Becca displays.

Clem's a rock, man. So far the apocalypse shows no signs of beating her.

That's the one thing I love about Clem's character, she's always been this brightness in that dark world, like voting to keep Ben alive and always staying hopeful about her parents. She was pretty much Lee's light and my personal canon playthrough is for her to try and remember that quality and for her to hang on to it.

I'd say Becca from 400 Days is legitimately experiencing trauma. From the way she talks it's clear that she's lost hope and been dulled to the remaining good things TWD's world has to offer.

People hate the way she acts but you can't really blame her in a post-apocalyptic world, especially if she's more weak-minded than Clementine. Unlike Clementine it seems like she's kept out of the loop sometimes so she doesn't really have a full picture of what's going on which explains her quick changes of opinion and mood.

I'm not saying Becca isn't justified in behaving the way she does. The zombie apocalypse is obviously rough, and I'd expect more kids who are dealing with it to be traumatized than not.

Everybody deals with stress and tragedy in that environment. Clem was shut out of group politics more than once in E1, suffered loss, and witnessed her fair share of horrible things. What makes the difference is remaining strong and not letting it change you for the worse, like turning to nihilism like Becca seems to be doing.

I don't rule out the possibility that Becca will be over her trauma if/when we see her again. Maybe after the events of 400 days she'll find inner strength like Clementine. But for now, from what I've seen of her, she's in a bad place. She's trying to harden herself against everything she deals with, but in a destructive way.

I'm pretty sure (this nightmare is fueled by season 4's slide) that Sarah will go irretrievably Catatonic when Carlos dies, and Clementine will have to kill a now psychopathically amoral (as in like Winston amoral for example, EG just doesn't care about killing people for their stuff) Becca in self defense. Like Duck, Katjaa, and Doug/Carley, these will be the massive mid point deaths that rock your psyche and set you up for the finale. Basically the way these kids react, and how they are destroyed mentally by the apocalypse acts as an excellent foil for Clementine. I think we will get chances to try to prepare Sarah beforehand throughout season 2, but it will always be interrupted by Carlos (who will be naturally pissed at you), so she ends up with not enough mental fortitude to handle his death. We will get chances to try to save Becca, or play along for Clems own safety when we are in her now morally fucked up little group, but naturally it will be just not enough, and Clem shall feel she has failed both of them, and witnessed two more kids (Duck...) destroyed by the apocalypse.

To say that she is "adapting" suggests that the apocalypse will never end and they will live like this for the rest of their lives, which unfortunately may or may not be true.
God, this franchise is depressing. :-(

I actually feel the impossible. I dislike this new Clem. She's so apathetic. She just doesn't give a shit. The only time she came alive to me was when she was stitching up Sam's mess. I am just gonna denounce everything that happens in season 2 if episode 2 is shitty, too.

Because I used to like Clem. I used to love Clem. So I bought the season pass for season 2. The reason I don't like her anymore is because... Fucking listen to her voice. She sounds like she doesn't give a shit about anything. Granted, it makes sense, but I'd rather play as someone who fucking cares. Every line after Omid's death is just like, "Oh. Who cares. I don't."

she cared about Omid! she cried when he died and he didn't give her much attention like she needed anyways since he had a lady to take care of. She isn't gonna cry everyday for him after 16 months! she didn't even do that to Lee. Clementine is taking care of herself and to me it looks like she gives a shit about everything when it comes to herself and i like that. She is now on her own anyways

That's due to a Lack of opportunity. We get that voice back a bit when Clem talks to Sam. That voice only comes out when she has something to be happy about.

Have you considered the possibility that most of the time she IS a desensitised survivor? Her life doesn't give her many opportunities to let her guard down and act like a kid again. And when she does...well...

Telltale did say they plan on giving Clementine (and Melissa) more chances to explore her childhood, especially in episode 2. Also, there are some awesome parts in episode 1 of season 2 where Clem can call people out on swearing, can't wait for more of those. (Clem: "It would be bad if your wife knew we talked.." Alvin "Motherfuc-" Clementine interrupting, half menacing voice half innocent voice "Swear".

If Clem wasn't the PC, the "desensitized survivor" approach would be understandable. But since I'm now officially in control of Clem, shouldn't I have the option of playing her as something besides a desensitized survivor? In a story where almost EVERYONE is a paranoid savage, I'd like to at least have the choice of portraying the protagonist as the sole likeable character.

Im sorry, I know everyone is entitled to their own opinion but I disagree. I like this new Clem . She is the same girl but she cant show it since all these things are happening. How would you like to see a still innocent defenseless girl that cant survive and take care of herself in season 2? It would be pretty harsh...

It's not fantastic. It's flat. Also, never fucking use that argument again. I couldn't rap like Little Wayne, he's still a little shithead. Granted, Clem is FAR better than Little Wayne, but he proves my point. I couldn't code like the people who made... Fuck, I dunno, the seedy side of Newgrounds.com, but they still fucking suck.

On a bit of a tangent here but did you enjoy the first season of the game?
I assume you found Clementine in Season 1 quite endearing, how was the ending of the game for you and how would you have written a 'grown up', 'seasoned' Clementine?

I did. And I was happy to sacrifice Lee for Clem Clem. Clem originally killed my Lee, but then I learned that she makes a choice on her own, taking inspiration from your choices if you let time run out. So I went back and she ran. I would've written her in the opposite way that she was written. Depressed and scared before the time skip. Normal afterwards.

Post Omid, Christa became cold, an emotional stonewall, and pragmatic. Clementine survived with Christa (who felt that Clementine was responsible for Omid's death) for 16 months, and witnessed A baby die! because of Omid's absence (which Clem feels responsible for, and can tell how Christa feels even if Christa tries to hide it). Most of all Clementine had to deal with the guilt over her being indirectly responsible for Ben, Kenny, and Omid's deaths because she went with the stranger. She had to deal with this guilt and grief on her own because Christa was stonewalling her.

It's hardly surprising that after you spend a year and a half with a cold and hardened Christa that you become pretty cold and hardened yourself.

But don't you think that she'd be the slightest bit depressed after Lee's death? Even so, she could still show some fucking emotion. She only shows an emotion other than villainous hatred once after Omid's death. When accepting Nick's apology.

SPOILER WARNING:

The Walking Dead - The Walking Dead: Season 2 - Episode 1: All That Remains

Funny, I'm the opposite; I liked every piece of Clem's character development except for the suturing scene because I feel it's almost too badass to be believable. I mean, I know grown adults who I don't think would be capable of sewing up a wound like that, probably including myself.

I think Omid's death is key to understanding the current state of her character. As she explains later in the episode, that was when she truly realized that her innocence and childlike nature could get her loved ones killed. She realizes that she can't always be sweet and vulnerable; that it makes her a liability. And so in the following 16 months she hardens her heart and tries to become more cagey and self-sufficient.

By lowering her voice? Even when she's swept up in the river, her screams sound like, "Oh." She sounds like someone trying to sound scared. It's mostly the voice acting, honestly. Also, for the suturing scene, if you'd been in the apocalypse for two years, and had been taught how to sew yourself up, you'd better fuckin be ready to sew yourself up.

Keyword, "almost." Protagonists in the realm of realistic fiction thrive off of the existence in real life of heroic willpower (EG pain resistance), luck, and performing acts of heroism or desperation that are "almost" too bad ass to be possible.

Also, Christa made sure Clementine was pretty prepared after Omid's death. Based on Clem's personality after the 16 month skip it sounds like Christa and the apocalyptic world put Clementine through a hellish training regime.

"Omid was gonna teach-"(implying history teaching) "I know what Omid said. You need to learn how to keep this fire going, it's getting colder, and if you don't know how to do this...well..." Later, pre-suturing: "...Just like Christa taught me...".